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Providing market intelligence on the trends that shape the software industry, G2's analyst team helps tech buyers and vendors make data-driven decisions and elevate the digital transformation of their businesses.

Meet our Analysts

Providing market intelligence on the trends that shape the software industry, G2's analyst team helps tech buyers and vendors make data-driven decisions and elevate the digital transformation of their businesses.

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The tech industry is impacted by digital evolutions, and revolutions, on an almost daily basis. G2 Research empowers buyers to evaluate solutions more effectively by continuously presenting new data in new ways.

Hospitality Trends in 2019

The hospitality industry, despite being one of the oldest industries, is fully embracing digital transformation. As a consumer, you’ve likely booked a hotel room online, unknowingly using hotel reservations software. Or perhaps you’ve checked out of a hotel using your phone or email. It’s easier than ever to book a hotel room, check in, and check out; facilitated by technology, the customer’s direct access to these services has contributed to the industry’s growth.

Like many industries, a lot of that money is being funnelled into digital transformation. Hotels, particularly luxury hotels, are beginning to transform themselves from the inside out. From more modern interiors and smart rooms that can be controlled by tablet to using mobile phones as room keys and self check-in kiosks, hotels are using technology in more and more visible ways. But the real technology drivers are behind the scenes.

Artificial intelligence and personalized services

With disruptors like Airbnb continuing to arrive on the scene, the travel and hospitality industries must adapt to the on-demand service that millennials expect. This is difficult, however, for large hotels whose rooms are booked sometimes months in advance. Booking engines have helped in this regard, since they provide customers with a wide variety of available rooms and prices, but this is not so different from the traditional hotel booking model.

Travel agents are expected to become a thing of the past, with the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics predicting a 12% decline in the number of travel agents between 2016 and 2026. This is in spite of the fact that the number of travel agents actually increased 10% between 2014 and 2016. Though the industry is growing, the BLS still predicts a decline, since people tend to book their own travel and accommodations because it’s faster and easier, and allows for more control over their itineraries. However, there is still the desire for curated experiences. Traveling can require a lot of research and legwork to organize, especially if one is traveling overseas. Between passports, vaccines, navigating a foreign language, and exchanging currency, there are a lot of “i”s to dot and “t”s to cross.

Enter artificial intelligence software. Artificial intelligence and machine learning have the ability to create customized recommendations based on a user’s preferences and past travel experiences. It sounds invasive, but, in fact, 57% of U.S. travelers want brands to use their data to personalize their travel recommendations and experiences. And, according to the same source, 36% of these people would be willing to pay more for such a personalized experience.

Prediction:

We predict that the number of hotels and travel businesses implementing artificial intelligence and other personalization services will increase by 30% in the next year. For some, particularly millennials, travel is a large priority and they are willing to spend more money on a superior experience. On average in 2017, millennials spent around $4,500 on travel, taking an average of 3.5 vacations in that year. It may seem surprising that in a world full of data breaches that people would be willing to share their data, but it’s a classic risk vs. reward scenario.

For customers, especially millennials, sharing data to receive a superior experience is very on-brand. Experiences are their main motivator for spending money, so it makes sense that one might sacrifice a bit of security to enhance an experience that will end up costing a significant amount of money. Hotels and travel businesses benefit greatly from this data, since digital marketing is fueled by SEO and customer metrics.

While that isn’t a huge margin, there’s definitely ground to be gained if hotels vary the structure of their loyalty programs to something more gamified. Perhaps a customer could earn a reward if they stay in a certain number of countries or states within a defined period of time. Perhaps they could earn rewards for utilizing the hotel spa or restaurant often. Experience-based rewards are the way to go for millennials.

Want to learn more about spa and salon marketing? Discover the best marketing strategies and practices with our ultimate guide to spa marketing.

In many ways, loyalty programs benefit both the business and the customer. The customer gains rewards for repeated business, and the business gains a repeat customer and the possibility of future referrals as well as data on the customer’s travel habits. In this day and age, many loyalty programs are purely digital, making them easy to use from both sides of the transaction and providing even more data than ever before.

The hospitality industry is evolving, and the changes within it are being embraced by both hotels and customers. Hotels seem extremely invested in providing better, more modern services for their guests, and guests are responding positively. People are traveling more, and that can only mean good things for the industry. With technology like artificial intelligence on the rise, the possibilities are nearly endless. Hotels in some form will always need to exist, and they will only improve as time goes on.

To read more about the restaurant side of hospitality and restaurant technology trends, check out 2019’s restaurant trends.

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Author

Lauren is a market research analyst focusing on the e-commerce and retail industries. Since joining G2 in July 2017, she has focused her energy on consumer-driven spaces after spending time in the vertical, design, and CAD software spheres. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in English language and literature and her writing and research has been cited in publications such as Forbes, Eater, and Nasdaq.com, among others. She enjoys building and sharing her knowledge, and in her free time enjoys reading, knitting, and gaming. Her coverage areas include retail technology, e-commerce, and restaurant technology.